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Student Council Report
Student Council Report
By Ashlynna Ng( 13A01B)
Rafflesian Times
14
‘ This is amazing!’‘ Seeing this library, I already feel like studying!’‘ Now I know why Raffles people always do so well …’ With every exclamation, I could feel my face uncontrollably turning redder as I brought the two guests, councillors from another school attending 33rd Student Council Investiture, around our campus.
The pair marveled at the photo display of CCAs around Block J; they compared our three-storey library, complete with entire shelves of past year papers, a photocopying room and think tanks, to the single storey one in their school. Their genuine wonderment at the things we have become accustomed to seeing everyday was a striking reminder of how lucky we are. I found myself repeatedly rushing to finish every introduction of each place with‘… and we are very lucky to have these resources.’
Indeed, we Rafflesians are a privileged bunch. We enjoy two years or more of quality education and have an abundance of resources to tap into. Being a councillor meant that I was a privileged subset in an already advantaged group.
Councillors are equal to our fellow school mates, yet are privileged because we have the responsibility of organizing school-wide events and targeting the needs of the school community by introducing initiatives. We are granted resources such as funds, a spot in the calendar and the advice of teacher-mentors to fulfill this end, and it is our duty to put them to good use.
Throughout my council term, I have been repeatedly reminded how easy it is to forget how incredibly blessed we are. Many a time, councillors would complain about our‘ limited funds’— despite the fact that our budget for events is already many times that of other schools. Our demands and expectations are so high, because we habitually receive so much. We appear to carry around an‘ invisible knapsack’, a term coined by Dr Peggy McIntosh— a set of unearned resources that we carry around by virtue of our identity. More often than not, we are not aware of what these unearned resources are. There are many‘ resources’ that councillors possess, such as keys to the games room at the Hodge Lodge or rooms to store logistics and hold meetings— and at times we saw this as a right, rather than a privilege. Thankfully during our term, the student population kept the council grounded. If we made mistakes, or misused our privileges, our friends were there to remind us
If we made mistakes, or misused our privileges, our friends were there to remind us that the provision of these resources are for the sole purpose of better serving the school.